This one's for you, up-past-midnight grad student, and you, confused sophomore architecture student! School can be hard, but much of doing well has to do with figuring out the system that you're in and taking the right steps to win in that environment. School can be a bit ambiguous and unstructured - you actually have a lot of free time, and what you do with it can greatly impact how well you do. For what it's worth, here are our thoughts about school. Not just surviving the process, but thriving, maintaining physical and mental health, and enjoying it along the way.

SCHEDULING & SLEEP

1. Finish a day ahead of time.

It’s possible, and really, really helpful. If your professor told you it was due on Tuesday, you'd finish on Tuesday, instead of cramming Tuesday night to finish by Wednesday. Knowing when to stop is important. On a related note...

2. Give yourself an hour to print anything.

That plotter might run out of ink!

3. Don't pull all nighters.

These aren't necessary, and the work you do late at night is usually not great.

6. Take one day every week off.

7. Physical activity helps.

DESIGN

Your professors and future employers can tell if you're well versed in what's going on in the architectural world around you. Absorb as much architecture as you create.

9. Become a graphic designer.

Okay, you're not really going to be one, but you're in control of the visual communication of your projects. Just don't forget that there's a world of graphic designers out there that are much more skilled than we are at graphic design.

18. Tell a story.

Being memorable is a good thing.

FINALLY

Remember, it's not usually as big of a deal as you think it is. You have a really long time to safely make many mistakes and recover from them. A lot of people are hard on you while you're in school, but you'll be better for it. You can do this!